A Serpent's Heart
by HeatherSinead
Summary: In the Marauder's era, there was a romance that was never spoken about. This romance was between a lonely Slytherin boy caught up in dark activities and a shy, sweet Hufflepuff girl who was a metamorphmagus and wanted nothing but safety. SS/Original Char
1. Chapter 1

Sapphira awoke to the sound of chaos and shuffling. She heard her older brother, Artemis, running up and down the hall, double checking that he had everything he would need for the school year, and triple checking it after that. Her parents could be heard from the kitchen, where her mother from the smell of things was making her special omelets for the family's last breakfast together for the year. Phoebe, the children's mother, was putting her all into this morning's breakfast seeing as both of her children would be out of the house, leaving her to her own devices and a whole lot of free time on her hands.

Sapphira finally rolled out of her comfortable bed and was about to walk out of her room when something caught her eye in the corner of her room. There in the far left corner of her room was a navy blue pet carrier with the door shut tight, but through the bars was a tiny black paw clawing at the air. Sapphira slowly slipped off her bed, tip-toed to the carrier and crouched beside it, bringing her face level to the door of the cage. Her face, unfortunately, got too close and the black paw darted out and quickly smacked her on the nose. A little yelp from the young metamorphmagus was heard, followed by laughter from the doorway.

"I see you've met you're new pet," Sapphira's father, Aristedes, stood there, openly chuckling at his young daughter and the surprised look on her face. Sapphira blushed, and her hair grew long enough that she could hide her face from her father. "Aw, come now, darling. Don't shy away from your dear old dad, I meant no harm." He knelt in front of her and lovingly brushed the hair out of her face before opening the door to the cage her new pet was in; he reached in and pulled out a black, long-haired kitten and held it out to Sapphira to take and hold. Carefully, Sapphira took the kitten from her father's hands and held it to her chest, stroking the furry creature between it's large ears. A soft purr rumbled from the throat of the kitten as she softly nuzzled Sapphira.

"Her name is Calypso, and like it said in your Hogwarts letter, she gets to go with you and she'll stay in your dorm during your classes and meals, but other than that she can usually accompany you where ever you go." Sapphira stared at the little fur ball in her arms and smiled, she had never had a pet of her own. Once, when she was much younger the family had owned a dog, a small yappy thing, but Sapphira never felt any real pull toward the animal. Now, her mother and father had been so kind to give her a kitten that would keep her company on the many lonely nights ahead while she spent the long school year at school. Her first real time away from home with neither her mother nor her father to guide her or tell her what to do; she was nervous. Sapphira gave a quick shake of her head to bring her back to her father and the kitten in her arms and beamed a beautiful smile up at the man who, at the moment, shared her eye color.

"Thank you, Papa. I don't know what to say or how to thank you," Sapphira nuzzled Calypso before setting her on the floor to let her run around for the brief time it would take her to pack the last few items she had. "I promise to take good care of her and to write you and mum every day!" Aristedes laughed and patted his baby girl on her brightly colored head, smiling down at her.

"Just try to write every week. Once a day is far too often and far too long of a trip for those poor Hogwarts owls. I love you, darling, you're going to have a wonderful school year. Just remember to actually get out of your dorm and make friends. It'll make the next seven years far more enjoyable for you," he briefly hugged Sapphira, and gave her a wink, adding, "Besides, it'd be a shame to deprive the other kids of your wonderful company." Sapphira blushed a deep red, which brought another peal of laughter from her father. He gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head before standing up, reminding her she only had an hour left before they had to leave, and he walked out the door. She watched Calypso pounce on something that wasn't there and smiled once more at her little, furry friend before turning to her desk to pack up the last few items she had.

Once the household was finally packed and ready, Aristedes magicked all the trunks downstairs and into the cars trunk, somehow making it all fit. The Iatroz family filed into their small blue sedan and it was off to Platform 9 ¾ they went. Trying to stay calm and relaxed like a normal witch or wizard, Sapphira opened a book, but was unable to concentrate. She felt like she had been over these worries and anxieties many times before, but she couldn't stop the panicked route that her mind always seemed to take. Though, of course, a part of her was also very excited; she had watched Artemis come home on the holidays with his books and homework, showing her the different things she knew she would one day be able to learn. Who could forget the year he came home for the summer and he was actually allowed to perform magic for Sapphira and the rest of the family? That was what had really made Sapphira excited to come to Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The trip didn't seem to take as long as Sapphira had originally thought it would be, she barely had time to finish the chapter of her book that she had brought with her before they were pulling into the parking lot. They all got out of the car and loaded the bags and trunks onto a cart that was conveniently placed near the front of the parking lot, and all was wheeled into the enormous train station. Thanks to accompanying her parents when they took Artemis to the train station, Sapphira was prepared for the archway that she had to run through and didn't panic too much. She wasn't surprised that after less than five minutes her friend, Leah, had caught a glimpse of her and rushed to her side with her trunk in tow.

"Sapphira! I'm so glad I found you before you got on the train and we were separated," Leah gushed excitedly, clasping her hands over the other small girl's hands. Sapphira watched Artemis kiss their mother good-bye and shake his father's hand before he patted her on the shoulder and made his way to the scarlet train. Leah, however, tried to regain Sapphira's attention. "Do you know where you want to sit yet? I haven't heard that any compartment is better than the next, I just hope we get to sit with some nice people, or get to have a compartment to ourselves. I heard that rarely happens, though, with the amount of students that are going to be on the train."

"I'm not sure where I want to sit, I kind of thought I'd stick with my brother, Artemis, but he seems to have plans of his own. Let me just say good-bye to my parents and we can board and find good seats." Sapphira ran back to her mother and father and pulled the two of them into a group hug, holding them as tightly as she could. "I'm going to miss you, Mum and Papa. You will write me back, won't you?"Both of her parents reassured her that they would write a response to her every letter and kissed their youngest child good-bye. Sapphira was determined to be strong and put on a brave face, so she smiled brightly at her parents, grabbed her trunk and the pet carrier that held her little Calypso, and went back to meet Leah so they could get on the train. Leah threw her a smile and a wink and hooked arms with Sapphira as they walked toward the crowds surrounding the many entrances.

Boarding the train they found that there really wasn't an empty compartment to be seen and finally came to the last compartment after being chased out of the previous one by Lucius Malfoy. Smirking, he left the girls and shut the door, closing off their only exit. Thankful that he had left them at that, Sapphira sighed a breath of relief but turned sharply as a cough sounded from the other side of the small room. There sat a dark-haired boy already dressed in his Hogwarts robes sporting a green 'S' on the left lapel. He had sharp features and a slightly over sized nose, accompanied by a quirked brow that made him seem unfriendly.


	2. Chapter 2

Sapphira stood nervously in line with the other first year students while the headmaster made his customary speech introducing the first years and warning the older students to be polite and welcoming. She looked down the line and saw Leah talking animatedly to someone she had never seen before. Sapphira sighed; why couldn't she just start conversations out of nowhere? This question made her think back to the older boy on the train with the green and silver tie and the piercing dark brown eyes.

-

_The boy's cold, unfriendly black eyes stared at the girls with a curious, calculating expression. The scrutinizing stare made Sapphira uneasy, causing her hair to grow ever so slightly to cover more of her face. The growth, though slight as it was, was still enough to catch the older boy's attention and he raised one eye brow in interest. Leah, however, seemed to disregard the cold stare and waltzed over to the seats across from the boy, choosing the seat diagonal from him. Sapphira didn't know if she did this intentionally or simply because it was the closest to her, but that left the seat directly in front of the dark haired boy. She shifted the pet carrier that held her little Calypso and heard a quiet, disgruntled 'mew'. She mumbled a quick apology to the small creature and moved to her seat across from the older Slytherin boy. To distract herself from the slightly uncomfortable silence that had settled since the Malfoy boy chased them into this compartment, Sapphira played with Calypso's outstretched paws that had poked through his pet carrier. ___

_During the quiet that Leah seemed to allow, Sapphira's mind wandered to Hogwarts and how wonderful it must be; the halls, staircases, dining hall, and she couldn't even wrap her mind around the common rooms and the dorms she'd be staying in. While her mind was off imagining her new home for the next school year, she hardly noticed that she was being studied by calculating, dark eyes. Severus Snape was curious about this very quiet, shy girl whose hair could apparently grow on command. He suspected that she might be a metamorphmagus, but with how rare those were even in the wizarding world he figured it was just a case of underage magic due to her nerves. He watched as she absently played with the paws that stuck out from the little cage and heard soft, quiet 'meows'. He looked up to the girl's face and his eyes went over her soft, feminine features; she had a round face with full, pouty lips that looked as if they should be on a grown woman and not an eleven year old child. His eyes moved up to hers and was startled when they were fluctuating between many different colors; maybe the girl__was__ a metamorphmagus. His eyes widened when hers suddenly caught his. Sapphira gave the Slytherin a small, shy smile before looking back down to her kitten, but Leah decided now was time to talk.___

_"So, Sapphira, what house do you hope you're in?" Before Sapphira could say anything Leah barreled on. "Personally, I want to be in Gryffindor." From the corner of her eye, she saw the older boy roll his eyes at the mention of the acclaimed bravest house. ___

_"Why do you want to be in Gryffindor? There are other prestigious houses like Ravenclaw; both my brother and father were in that house, well, my brother is still in that house. He's a prefect this year, it's his last year." Leah seemed to be surprised that Sapphira had butted in, but it didn't seem to faze her otherwise as she was glad to have questions to answer. ___

_"Well, Gryffindor is known for bravery, honesty, and loyalty. That seems like a pretty good house to me, and I wouldn't mind being associated with a group of people known for that. Besides, it's way better than Hufflepuff or Slytherin," Leah's bright blue hues darted to the Slytherin boy who just rolled his eyes again. Sapphira was a little offended that she thought any house was better than the other, mostly though, she offended that Leah thought so little of Hufflepuff, the house her family said she was probably going to be in. Not to mention, she thought it was a bit rude to mention something like that in front of someone who was actually__in__ Slytherin; no one could mistake those silver and green ties for anything else. ___

_"You obviously know nothing of the house of Slytherin, if you did you would know how cunning and dangerous we could be and wouldn't be talking about it's inferiority. You might want to think before you speak next time, girl, or at least consider the company you keep." These were the only words the Slytherin boy had said since they entered the compartment and they were biting. However, Sapphira couldn't help but grin at someone finally telling Leah to watch her mouth, as she had been thinking the same thing. The grin didn't go unnoticed by Severus and he smirked in response. Leah's mouth opened, but soon shut as she had no come back; she knew that her comment was out of line, especially in mixed company. Sapphira was surprised that Leah had nothing to say in return, not even so little as an apology. ___

_"Despite my family's tradition of being in the honorable house of Ravenclaw, I believe I'll be in Hufflepuff, which is perfectly okay with me. I think it's reputation is severely down played and they're constantly underestimated; I can't wait to be a part of the house," Sapphira turned to Severus, blushing slightly and with an apologetic look. If Leah couldn't open her mouth to mutter a simple 'my apologies', Sapphira would do it for her. "I apologize for my friend's words; she wasn't thinking or taking the time to consider who her words might offend. My name is Sapphira Iatroz and this is Leah Silvers," She stuck her hand across the way towards the older boy and waited. Thankfully, she didn't make a fool of herself and have to wait long, for Severus' hand darted out and shook Sapphira's quickly before withdrawing his hand back to his lap. ___

_"I'm called Severus Snape and don't worry, her words didn't offend me. They merely caused amusement that someone could be so ignorant as to open their mouth about something they know nothing about." Severus wore a smirk that seemed beyond his twelve years and yet the little upturn of his lips caused a strange butterfly-like feeling in Sapphira's gut that she couldn't explain for she had never experienced it before. __  
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Sadly, their conversation didn't go past the introductions, but the dark boy was stuck in young Sapphira's mind, he was different from anyone she'd ever met. The line that led up to the sorting hat was growing shorter and shorter and her time was quickly approaching. To say that she was nervous was an understatement. Even though she knew that she only had to put the hat on, she was terrified of which house she would be put into. She knew better than to have any prejudice about any of the houses, but she was worried whether or not the people in the house would like here, how they would react to her.

She was starting to be annoyed by herself, the constant insecurities she felt, they were awful and she was glad that she didn't go around letting everyone know about them. Merlin only knows what they would have thought, how annoyed other people would be. Part of her hoped to be put in Ravenclaw with her brother, but he had already said that he didn't think that was the house for her.

It was her turn now, the last student having jumped of the stool to go sit with the other Gryffindors who seemed to be cheering him on though they probably had no idea who he was. She swallowed the lump in her throat as she took the first step towards the ancient, worn hat. McGonagall seemed to smile at her encouragingly, giving Sapphira that last little push she needed towards the stool. As soon as she was seated on the wooden stool, McGonagall placed the hat on her head, but being as small as she was, the hat fell past her eyes, effectively cutting off her vision. Sapphira couldn't help but wonder why the hat was so large when it was meant to sit on the heads of eleven year old children, but her thoughts were cut off when she heard deep chuckling coming from within her own mind. It made her squeak before reaching up to grab the edges of the hat and pull it down further.

"You've got quite the mind on you, young miss," the hat said in its gravelly voice. Sapphira would have looked around wildly had the hat not covered her eyes. She wasn't sure if the voice could only be heard by her, or if everyone could hear it. Considering she hadn't heard the voice before while everyone else was getting sorted, except for when the hat would scream out the name of a house, she concluded that she was the only one that could hear it at the moment.

"My Father was a Ravenclaw," she thought timidly, as if trying to explain away her intelligence. A loud 'Hmmm' sounded presumably from the hat and Sapphira's brows furrowed. Was the hat going to place her there because of her intelligence and the fact that her father and brother were in that house? A loud laugh came from the hat again.

"No, no, child. While you are very intelligent, Ravenclaw is not the house for you," it said, repeating the words that bother her father and brother had said. Sapphira peeked out from under the hat, shooting a glance at the Slytherin table, spotting Severus Snape almost immediately, but he didn't seem to be watching the sorting ceremony; he was watching a red headed girl that was sitting at the Gryffindor table. "Slytherin, my dear? No, no, no. You are far too kind and trustworthy. No, best put you in HUFFLEPUFF." Hufflepuff was screamed out into the air and the house broke out into hearty, strong applause. Sapphira blinked, not knowing what to do after being sorted until McGonagall took the hat off of her head and nodded towards the Badger's table.

Sapphira jumped off of the stool, careful not to fall and make a fool of herself, and went to squeeze in at the Hufflepuff table, sitting between a pair of friends by the names of Frank and Ted. They were friendly boys, telling her all about the in and outs of their House, but they didn't tell her too much about their Common Room. She knew every Common Room was different, and she knew about Ravenclaw's and Gryffindor's but she had never heard anything about Hufflepuff's.

During the Prefects speech, it was obvious why neither boy had said anything about their common room. Apparently the door to their Commons was behind a bunch of barrels, or inside of one, Sapphira could hardly hear the prefect as she went on about their Commons, all the while leading the way. Had she been able to hear, she would have found it fascinating, instead she would just have to wait and see for herself. Finally, they were right next to the kitchens near a bushel of barrels. The girl tapped on the barrels, seemingly saying something to herself that distinctly sounded like "Helga Hufflepuff' before one of the lids opened to reveal a passage way.

Once all the first years were inside and seated, the rest of the upperclassmen went to go settle into their beds and unpack their things as the Prefect finished filling in the younger students. Ted and Frank waved to Sapphira, following suit with the other 2nd years seeing as how they had just heard this speech last year by someone else. Sapphira settled into a chair and listened intently, memorizing everything the girl said about their Common room, how to get in, and even how to get into the Kitchens for a snack. Bethany, the Hufflepuff Prefect passed out the students timetables, wanting them to be on time for their classes tomorrow and sent the lot of them off to bed, wishing them a good sleep and a great first day at Hogwarts.


End file.
